School effort to tackle childhood obesity
By Tracy Holmes
Black Press
Nov 24 2006
Semiahmoo Trail Elementary teachers have a new set of ABCs, which they’ll exercise to improve student fitness.
Agility, balance, co-ordination and speed are things every teacher can teach – and every student can learn.
Surrey school district’s Glenn Young said it’s all part of an ongoing effort to tackle childhood obesity.
Young has been working for two years to equip elementaries with the gear and know-how to get students back on the fitness track. They are now teaching children how to lead their peers and giving teachers strategies to make the most of limited time spent on physical education.
Last month, he and iQuest Performance Centre launched the FitKid Coach program, which trained 160 Grade 7 students to lead their peers through various strength, flexibility and agility exercises.
Last week at Semiahmoo Trail, Young put 10 teachers and principal Steve Redding through the paces using agility ladders, balance boards, and balance balls. Few of the exercises demand gym space, and all can be incorporated into other areas of curriculum.
Monday, he was at Chantrell Creek Elementary, bringing teachers up to speed on “brain break” activities – mini workouts that can be done in the classroom.
“It’s literally thinking outside the box, the box being the gym,” Young said.
“I’m trying to provide strategies for teachers to think outside of the box.”
Elementary curriculum recommends students receive 30 minutes of physical education every day. On average, Surrey students get up to 90 minutes a week over three days. In a January 2003 survey, teachers blamed curricular demands, lack of gym space and equipment, and lack of phys ed training for the shortfall.
Young said the average time spent on activity hasn’t changed since the survey. However, inroads have been made in the other areas.
He spent two years – and $100,000 – collecting state-of-the-art equipment for Surrey elementary schools. Now, every school has BOSU balance trainers, extreme balance boards, agility ladders, reaction balls, resistance tubing and pedometers.
“My elementaries are very, very equipped now. We’re the only district that has this kind of equipment in North America.”
“The next step is getting them to use that equipment appropriately.”
One motivator in capturing student interest is the opportunity to train like pro athletes. It’s easier to motivate students if they’re modeling the training their heroes do, he said.
Adding math puzzles and spelling games to drills also maintains interest while helping meet other curriculum requirements.
“You’ve got to make it motivating, more fun. It’s hard work to be fit and to get fit. If we can make it more fun, disguise the learning, it’s a win-win,” Young said.
“As this program grows, our kids are going to be much healthier.”
an obese preschooler has a 25 per cent chance of becoming an obese adult
an obese teenager has a 75 per cent chance of remaining obese for life
91 per cent of school-age children have a bike, but fewer than five per cent ride to school
80 per cent of children are driven to school
more than half of Canadian youth are not active enough for optimal growth and development
from 1981-96, the number of boys and girls who were overweight doubled and the number who were obese tripled
Fit Kid Childhood Obesity Program in England 
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